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The Woodwork Series - Acasia | Revelation Cat Craft Brewing

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A: Pours golden with an off-white head which leaves some faint retentive lace. Slightly less carbonation with this one.

N: Fruity and vinous with some floral citrus notes.

T: Malts rise up and take over the hops. This one is more like a red ale in the malt department. The Acasia wood imparts an oddly unusual flavor which is hard to pin down as I've never had anything aged in this type of wood. Some earthy notes.

Pours a murky honey orange with a foamy orange-tan head that settles to a small cap on top of the beer. Small dots of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Particles of sediment are seen suspended in the beer after the pour. Smell is of malt, citrus zest, and and earthy, woody aroma. Taste is much the same with a citrus zest flavor on the finish. There is a medium amount of hop bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp and medium bodied mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer with some nice woody aromas and flavors.

S: Very fruity like a lambic. Alcohol brings some sweetness. Notes of grape, citrus. Very complex.

T: Nice but surprisingly weak. Lots of fruity notes but little wood and little hops. Alcohol is not terribly aggressive but is present. Watery on the finish. Not bad by any means but definitely not great.

Overall this is a pretty good beer. The complexity is high but it sits very light which is a big downfall. I'm not sure if I will grab the others in the series... for $13 a bottle its quite pricy for the quality.

The Revelation Cat Woodwork Series. Let's line'm up and knock'm down. Departing from the base beer and tackling the two oaked varieties we're finally here at the end of the line, at the acasia-barrel aged beer.

Eh. Both the American and French oak wood added some slight tannic astringency that carried to and past the finish, as well as a small, small hint of vanilla. Both seemed to faintly mute the hops, allowed a bit more sweetness, but, then again, the base beer had a fair amount of sweetness to it to begin with. And, well, the acasia doesn't bring anything really different to the table beyond a low note of pepper.

The scant few days this beer sat on wood allowed it to pick up a few vague additional subtleties, but not nearly enough to warrant going out and acquiring a bottle of each. At last, the menacing-looking, sneering cat revealed: the experiment was a flop. Man, cats are assholes.

APPEARANCE: Pours a small, medium-thin, off-white head with lousy retention. Head quickly recedes to a splotchy wisp and ring. Color is amber or burnt orange and slightly hazy. A ring remains until the end and leaves some dots of lacing down the glass. The legs show a little bit of improvement over the base.

SMELL: Much like the base beer and the French Oak. Very yeasty. Green fruits, apples and pears perhaps, with some boozy white wine notes. Some spicy yeast qualities in there, as well as a sour hint in the back. A hint of oak and vanilla from the barrel, but I might just be making that up.

TASTE: Again, the same as the base and French Oak. Some pale malts, lots of yeasty spices, as well as some green fruit again. Very boozy for sure; lots of white wine and alcohol flavors in there. Big aftertaste is boozy with lots of spicy yeast notes, a hint of sourness, and a good dose of hop bitterness as well. Still very boozy and, but perhaps a touch of oak and vanilla from the barrels. Very faint though, and might just be my imagination.

PALTE: Full body and quite thick on the palate. Creamy smooth, goes down nice and smooth with a good deal of heat on the swallow and finishes slightly dry on the palate. I’d like the heat to be toned down, but again, this is still the best part of the beer.

OVERALL: Well, after the American Oak version lifted my spirits just a little, the Acasia smashed them through the floor. Like the French Oak, this one was just a waste. These two variants definitely needed more time in the barrel, as there was not much difference at all from the overly boozy, sour base beer. I would have to say that this entire series was a letdown. If you’re looking for a fun comparison series with a base beer and a few variants, check out any other consumable liquid. This was a disappointment.

a very interesting beer, i decided to open this one up as i had been looking at it for quite a while, poured into a flute.

the pour was interesting as a slightly hazed light amber came forward and brought with it a smooth and even head of white lacing.

aroma is a mixed bag, tart grape skins, wood notes, hints of grain, light fruit tartness and a touch of vanilla, very interesting and quite complex i have to admit. warming brings out more would and an almost wine like flavor that seems to roll across the palate and smooth everything over nicely,

overall another very interesting beer. i love when i stumble across something fun,

This poured out as a golden colored brew, the head was pretty big and thick looking. The smell is interesting. It's pungent on the nose with the wood aromas and the hops. The taste is a little tart with some hops in the mix. The mouthful is bubbly and not overly heavy. Overall it's not bad, but it wasn't really doin much justice for me.

Pours a darkish red colour, quite hellish with head that, in spite of being over-generous, is wonderful to behold: thick, beige, webbing out and clinging in Mayan patterns of lace. Pretty damn gorgeous.

Smell is nice and hoppy. Lots of citrus and floral notes with lavender and poppy character, hint of grapefruit. Sour, spicy note as well, with black pepper, capsicum and slight soapiness. Interesting blend, not bad at all.

Taste is...intriguing. Not really in a good way. Slight tang upfront that develops into an oddly sweet palate. Caramel malt with touches of fresh wood, lemon and grapefruit towards the mid. Nice piney tropical note as well. Gets kind of a tomatoey flavour late-mid and then the finish is oddly sweet, with some drying traces of hop bitterness just lingering at the edges. Kind of creamy, kind of vanilla, just lends the whole thing a sour note that don't quite work.

Fairly full, with a fair bit of texture. Quite dry as it goes down; not bad.

A bit odd at times, there's potential here for a really pleasant drop but the wood just takes it in strange directions and it seems a bit left-field, the blend doesn't quite mesh for me.

I tried the American Oak barrel version some months ago when I brought it back from America, and was immediately kicking myself that I didn't get the whole series. When I found a bottle of this at Star Grocery in Berkeley, CA, I was delighted. I brought it back to crack open with @LaitueGonflable.

Pours a hefty weight, sliding into the glass languidly and thickly. Body is a pleasantly hazed burnished red colour, with an initially full, thick and weight Belgian-style head. Lace is sticky and clumping. Despite this, the body stays rather light and sharp. Looks great.

Nose is weirdly and oddly balanced between a sweet woody vanilla character, and a burst of tropical fruitiness. Together they blend into an odd wine-like mixture. Green vegetation like a forest of pine-needles, even a hint of banana leaf. It's an odd mix, just like the American oak version, and I love it for it.

Taste is oddly subdued, and although it has some genuinely odd characters to it, it also sits far more like a traditional IPA, with a crisp and brisk hoppiness balanced on a firm smooth malt backbone. Wood, where it appears, comes around the edges of the palate, and on the finish, leaving more of a dryness than any true woody characters.

Very drinkable, and surprisingly mellow for an 11% ABV IPA—no doubt the aging helps with this. Unlike the American Oak version, however, the wood does not pronounce itself very fully here, and I'm a little disappointed about that, given it's the first chance I've had to sample an Acacia barrel beer.

Still, it's an odd experiment, and part of a wonderful series from Revelation Cat. Maybe some day, I'll try the rest.

Bottle was about 1.5 years old stored at cellar temp. Poured a caramel orange color with a small head that disappeared after 15 minutes and left little lacing.
S - the aroma was of honey, bit of citrus and pineapple. Some very nice candy sugar and sticky sweetness
T - Some of the pineapple and fruity flavor comes through but is REALLY muted and some stale hops give some slight bitterness but not too much more flavor other than a bit of alcohol in the back of the throat.
M - Smooth, medium bodied and quite nicely (slightly) carbonated.
O - This was much better fresh as most people would guess as it is an IPA. but being an imperial IPA I set it down and let it age a bit. Fresh I did think this was the best of all the series.

375 ml bottle. Served in a snifter, the beer pours a cloudy copper color with an inch off-white head. Head retention and lacing are both pretty good. Aroma is caramel malt, toffee, wood (acasia), leather and earthy hops. I think the malty aromas are much stronger than the hoppy ones. However, the hops are more noticable in the taste. The brew tastes like earthy hops, wood, herbs, caramel malt and some tannins. Mouthfeel/body is medium, it's a bit coating and is well carbonated. Drinkability is good, the alcohol is well hidden which helps makes this easy to drink. I think it's a good overall brew. I should have bought the other Woodwork Series beers when I had the chance, maybe I'll get lucky and come across them again one day.

As with the other two in this series I tasted it pours a slightly hazy copper color with a huge off-white head. The head eventually settles into a thin layer on top leaving decent lacing.

Smells of moderately dry pale and caramel malt flavors with earthy and lightly floral hop aromas. Also present are solid amounts of pine hops and a moderately tangy spiciness from the wood.

Tastes very similar to how it smells. Medium and somewhat dry malt flavors kick things off and are joined quickly by pine and earthy hop flavors. Midway through the sip the acasia influence kicks in with a moderately herbal quality - a combination of sage and rosemary. The acasia and hop flavors carry through to a solidly bitter ending.

Mouthfeel is good. It's got a nice thickness with smooth carbonation.

Drinkability is very good. I finished my glass quickly and could easily have another.

Overall it was very interesting to see the affects of different types of wood and this one was undoubtedly the most herbal. Worth a shot to see for yourself.

Actually brewed at De Proef in Belgium for Alex Liberati in Rome.I poured into a goblet to get the full effects of the aroma and appearance,I know this is labeled as a Double IPA but its not by any stretch of the imagination,but since the brewer calls it one well than I cant dispute it.Poured a deep hazed mix of amber and burnt orange,a large blooming white head atop that takes forever to subside.Great aromas,its a mix of the subtle toasted Acasia and deep fruitiness,it has a German malt-like doughiness to it as well,light leafy hop shows thru as well.Subtle toasted wood is pretty well rounded on the palate,not to much to take over the flavors,again the German malt flavors are there lending a light doughiness,hop flavors are more spicy and leafy,the alcohol although noticeable is not overwhelming by any means.A good sipper with a cigar perhaps?I like the concept and really didnt expect a hop bomb so I wasnt let down,its a real nice night cap type beer.

375 mL green gueuze bottle to oversized wine glass. Each bottle from the Woodwork Series is identical, regardless of the version. The barrel type is indicated only on the bottle wrap, which is ticked off from the list of the base beer, the 3 barrel types and the blended version. Ironically, the label mispells "ACACIA" unless I'm unaware of two acceptable spellings. They also have the whole affect/effect thing backwards but enough of the grammar lesson. Regardless, the Woodwork Series is a great concept and has great presentation to go along.

[Notes from a tasting including the French Oak, the American Oak & Acacia]

A: A 2 finger light brown head is both foamy and creamy. The retention is very good. A small amount of particulate floats within the body which is amber-orange in color and has deep red tints. Hazy with less transparency than the American and French Oak versions. Lacing is adequate.

S: Alex Liberati designed this series of brews to highlight the affects of each wood species, so I think it was a good decision to keep the ingredients as simplified as possible. There is one malt variety (Munich), one hop variety (Nelson Sauvin) and De Proefs house yeast strain (Proef 8801). It's no surprise then that the nose is very similar across the different versions. Maltier than most American DIPAs with aromas of toasted grain, caramel, honey and toffee. The Nelson Sauvin hops provide a vinous, fruity, wine-like quality. Being that this beer was brewed in Belgium and Nelson Sauvin hops are grown in New Zealand, Mr. Liberati could not have chosen a hop variety from any further away. The nose on the Acacia version isn't the strongest, but it is the most favorable.

T: Acacia is noticeably different than oak. It imparts softer, rounder and sweeter wood notes in comparison. The same seven days in the Acacia barrel doesn't quite capture the same intense woodiness that the other beers have. It wouldn't behoove this experiment to change one of the constants, but I believe the beer would have benefitted from more time in the barrel. Alcohol is noticeable, but for 11% ABV, it is incredibly well-masked.

M: The carbonation is softer and the texture is creamier in the Acacia version. This causes the Acacia to have a less significant mouthfeel than the French Oak, probably because the dryness doesn't come through to the same degree. It does, however, allow some room for the hop bitterness to come through. Nonetheless, 110 IBUs is still unfathomable.

D: The drinkability is only average, maybe a little above. But it doesn't need to be any better than that. The purpose is to try to distinguish the subtle differences in the woods through sampling, not to endlessly drink the base beer. This beer was produced for contemplation, with experimentation in mind and ultimately providing a wonderful opportunity for a few people to take part in it. Thank you for the study.

Pours a hazy brownish amber with an enormous fluffy white head that shows excellent retention and lacing.

The aroma is the best of this series with some extremely aromatic wood character. There is some spiciness and a really robust, almost purfume-like, floral aroma that I don't get in any of the others. The dry wine-like Nelson hops are still in full effect.

The flavor is very smooth and well balanced. It's much earthier and less hoppy than the others. All kinds of leather and tannins coming through and the finish is not nearly as dry as the two oak versions. Smooth finish.

The mouthfeel is the least effervescent of the series. It's also the smoothest and most drinkable as the alcohol seems hidden better.

All in all, I'd rate this the best of the bunch though, ironically, it's got the least hop presence. I personally just like the character that this wood gives the beer. Good stuff.

A- Poured from the bottle with a massive cream-colored head which was well-retained and produced some substantial sticky lacing throughout the drink. The body was a slightly hazy orange-amber color with no visible carbonation.

S- Smells dominantly woody (impressions of leather and sandalwood), over a base of crackerlike malt, and muted earthy and citrus hops.

T- The crackerlike malt is still evident on the palate, but this is overwhelmed by impressions of leather, sandalwood and SAND. The hops are barely there, and their "bite" has been erased (seemingly) by the presence of the acasia. The finish lingers with tannin after each sip.

M- A medium body with a creamy texture imparted by the soft carbonation... this iteration of the Woodwork Series seems a bit more creamy in the mouth than the Base beer. Definitely some heat from the ethanol, and a strong astringency from the acasia.

D- While this is all very interesting, and while it does a fabulous job of highlighting the characteristics imparted by acasia, it is simply too bold to be consumed on a regular basis. I would STRONGLY recommend drinking this along-side the other beers in the Woodwork Series to appreciate what Revelation Cat has done here.